The present invention relates to elongated rails, such as handrails, of the type that are mounted on walls, posts, or other structures by a number of spaced-apart supports.
Construction Specialties, Inc., the assignee of the present invention, makes and sells a line of wall protection products under the trademark ACROVYN(copyright). The ACROVYN(copyright) line includes several styles of handrails that have extruded aluminum retainers and in some cases covers of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) blended with a small amount of an acrylic polymer that are mounted on the retainers. The retainers provide the strength and rigidity for the support of persons who use the handrails for assistance and also endure impacts of objects that strike the handrails. The covers provide durable and attractive surfaces to the exposed parts of the handrail. Some styles of the ACROVYN(copyright) line include wood components, such as handgrips and crash rails, that are mounted on the retainers. Handrails similar to the ACROVYN(copyright) handrails are available from several suppliers.
Virtually all types of handrails are supported in spaced-apart relation to the walls or posts by which they are supported so as to leave a space between the handgrip portion of the handrail and the wall for the user""s fingers. In most cases, the supports are individual brackets that are strongly attached to the walls and the handrails so as to be able to both carry the loads of persons who use the handrail for assistance and to endure impacts from objects that strike the handrail forcefully. There are advantages to using for each support a single bolt that passes through a hole in a portion of the handrail, a hole in a bracket member that provides the desired spacing between the handrail and the wall (or post) surface and spreads the applied loads over a suitably large area of the wall (or post) surface, and through the wall (or post) to a suitable anchor, such as a toggle nut. The single bolt for each support provides a unitary, structurally sound and reliable connection and avoids the complexity and tediousness of installation of multiple fasteners at each support location. On the other hand, the holes in the handrail and the wall have to be drilled on site so that they will be aligned, which is time-consuming. In some cases, the head of the bolt remains visible in the final installation or is concealed by installing a plug.
In handrails that have extruded aluminum retainers and covers of polymeric materials or components of wood, metal or other materials attached to the retainer, the covers or other components are installed only after the retainers are mounted on the wall (or posts) and both conceal the heads of the bolts and make them inaccessible. If it becomes necessary to remove the handrail, the covers and/or other components affixed to the retainers have to be removed.
An object of the present invention is to provide a rail installation, such as a handrail installation, in which single bolts are used at each support point for the rail and in which the rail need not be drilled to fasten it to the support. Another object is to provide a rail and supports therefor that permit covers and/or other components to be pre-assembled to the rail before the rail is attached to the supports. Similarly, it is a further object to permit all of the supports for the rail to be installed on the wall or post system (or other supporting structure) before the rail is installed. Still another object of the present invention is to provide supports for a rail in which the heads of the fasteners are concealed from normal view but are accessible without any disassembly of the rail and covers or other components associated with the rail.
The foregoing objects are attained, in accordance with the present invention, by a rail and supports therefor that include an elongated rail having an axis, an undercut groove of a uniform generally xe2x80x9cCxe2x80x9d shape in cross section extending axially along the rail, and a plurality of supports attached to the rail in spaced-apart relation. Each support has a bracket member having a supported surface adapted to engage a structure on which the rail is mounted and having a supporting surface spaced apart from the supported surface and a lock member received on the supporting surface of the bracket member. The lock member includes a locking cam portion, which is received in the undercut groove, and has a size and shape such that it can enter the undercut groove when it is in an unlocked rotational position relative to the undercut groove and such that it frictionally engages walls of the undercut groove in a locked rotational position relative to the undercut groove and thereby retains the rail against displacement relative to the structure. A fastener joins the lock member to the bracket member against displacement of the lock member relative to the bracket member and for rotation of the lock member relative to the bracket member.
The rail and supports, according to the invention as described generally thus far, have the very significant advantage over many previously known rail supports of permitting all of the supports for a length of rail to be installed on a wall, posts or other structure independently of the rail. The supports need not be installed precisely lengthwise of the rail in order to ensure register of holes in the rail with the supports, as is required in many previously known rail and support structuresxe2x80x94the undercut groove can accept the lock members at any locations lengthwise of the rail. After all of the supports are installed, the rail is assembled to the supports by simply inserting the undercut groove of the rail onto the lock members of the supports, which are then in unlocked positions for acceptance of the locking cam portions by the undercut groove. The installer then rotates each lock member into the locked position, in which the rail is held firmly in place on each support by frictional engagement of the locking cam portion of the lock member with the undercut groove of the rail. If the rail or one or more of the supports requires repair, the rail is very easily and quickly removed from the supports by rotating the lock members to their unlocked positions and separating the rail from the lock members.
In many cases, the lock member of each support will include a mounting base portion engaging the supporting surface of the bracket member and a shank portion intermediate the locking cam portion and the mounting base portion. It is desirable for the lock member to have a tool-receiving formation on a portion thereof, such as the shank portion, externally of the undercut groove adapted to receive a tool for use to facilitate rotating the lock member. The tool-receiving portion may, for example, be a peripheral surface of the lock member having facets adapted to be engaged by a wrench.
The undercut groove of the rail may have walls forming recesses that face each other, and the locking cam portion of the lock member of each support correspondingly includes locking portions that frictionally engage the walls forming the recesses in the locked position of the lock member. The locking cam portion of the lock member of each support further includes a tapered lead-in portion adjacent each of the locking portions, the lead-in portions serving to guide the locking portions into engagement with the walls forming the recesses of the undercut groove upon rotation of the lock member from the unlocked position to the locked position. It is preferred that the lock member be unitary and a moldment of a solid polymeric material, such as nylon. Other materials, including metals, can be used for the lock member. As an optional but desirable feature, the lock member and bracket member of each support may have interacting detents establishing the unlocked and locked positions of the lock member.
As a further and desirable refinement, the undercut groove of the rail has spaced apart L-shaped flanges having inturned lip portions forming recesses that face each other. The locking cam portion of the lock member of each support includes locking portions that frictionally engage the recesses in the locked position of the lock member. The shank of the lock member includes a shoulder-forming part and a groove-forming part configured such that when the lock member is in the locked condition segments along the upper and lower ends of the shoulder-forming part engage rear surfaces of lip portions of the inturned flanges and the inturned lip portions of the flanges of the retainer are received in upper and lower grooves formed between front surfaces of the locking portions of the locking cam portion of the lock member and rear surfaces of the shoulder-forming part.
In advantageous embodiments, the front surfaces of locking portions of the locking cam portion of the lock member engage upper and lower portions of a base surface of the undercut groove at engagement regions, and the front surfaces of the locking cam portion have protuberances that are elastically compressed and provide preloads for maintaining the locking cam portion in firm engagement within the recesses
In addition to fastening the fastener of each support to the bracket, the fastener may also serve to fasten the bracket member to the structure. For good appearance, the fastener of each support may be received within the bracket member along its entire extent between the supported surface and the supporting surface.
In advantageous embodiments, the bracket member of each support includes a recessed socket in the supporting surface and the lock member includes a base portion received in nested relation in the socket. The recessed socket of the bracket member and the base portion of the lock member have interacting detents establishing the unlocked and locked positions of the lock member.
In some embodiments, the rail has a retainer of extruded aluminum and a cover of a polymeric material received on a portion of the retainer located to face away from the wall. The undercut groove is located on a portion of the retainer that faces toward the wall and is not covered by the cover, thus to provide access to the lock member when the cover is assembled to the rail. In such an arrangement, the cover can be installed on the retainer before the rail is installed on the supports, and the rail can be removed from the supports without having to remove the cover from the retainer.
For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be made to the following description of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.